Naruto Shingetsu: Fabled Eyes
It felt weird, the realization that he was indeed a full-fledged shinobi now. The forehead protector that he wore was proof of that fact, but he'd felt like he was floating on cloud nine since graduation day, especially after he and his teammates had managed to pass their sensei's final test. Sure, he knew things were likely going to be way harder from here on out, but he was excited and ready nonetheless. Dusk was settling in, and he decided to hang around longer to watch the sun set. He loved this time of day more than any other, as day was transitioning to night. Yoru's feet dangled over the edge of the pier, and he had a smile on his face as he watched the sky. ---- Shina could be found just a ways down the path, walking towards the pier with a small doll in her hands. A light green glow was emminating from her hand, her other arm in a cast from about a week ago when her arm broke in a fight with Ayame. Got a little to reckless in their fight, and so soon after becoming a full fledged ninja. Oh well, she heard boys liked scars. The doll was a small analog she had gotten from one of the nurses, her interest in medical ninjutsu having been peaked when she watched the doctor fix her arm up. She looked up for a moment, a frown on her face as she just couldn't get this little cut to seal. It was much harder then it looked when Umi was doing it. But then, she grinned, seeing a familiar blond boy. "Yoru-san!" The young girl called out, using her free hand and waving the doll around to get his attention. ---- His eyes flickered briefly to the smooth, glassy surface of the body of water that stretched out in front of him. For some reason, he was feeling nostalgic, and he recalled as a kid his father teaching him to use his clan's flagship technique, the Great Fireball. Could it really have come as naturally to him as it did? At the time, his father was certainly impressed with how quickly he'd learned it. Shaken from his thoughts as he heard his name called, he looked over his shoulder and saw a familiar face. "Oi, Shina!" he called back, waving and grinning. "I'm gonna watch this sunset before I go home, wanna come join me?" ---- Shina giggled and nodded, waving her doll still as she ran down the hill to the pier, at Yoru's side in a matter of seconds, the little genin girl with a massive grin on her face. "Yeah! I love sunsets!" She said, taking a seat next to him on the pier, looking him up and down for a second, before her eyes went wide. "Hey, you got your headband to! We're both ninja now!" She said, setting her doll down and holding out her free hand for a high five. I mean, who would doubt Yoru-san really? I bet he aced his sensei's test with no issues! She thought. ---- As Shina ran down towards him, Yoru scooted over a bit to make sure she had plenty of room to sit down with him. "Heh, me too," he replied cheerily. "My favorite time of day." He noticed that she was observing him rather intently, and he tilted his head at her inquisitively before she revealed why. "Oh! This thing?" Grinning broadly, he jabbed his thumb at his headband. "Yeah! I'm excited. How about you?" Yoru indulged her offer for a high five enthusiastically. Truth be told, he wasn't shocked that Shina had made the final cut. She was talented. ---- Shina giggled as their hands made contact, letting her hand drop back down to her doll, holding it in her hands. "I'm pumped! I get to see what being a real ninja is like!" She said, tapping her headband happily. Yoru, in her mind, probably should already be a chunin at this point, the kid was a prodigy, and since he was from the Uchiha clan, it multiplied that factor by a lot. She was one of the few who knew Yoru was a truly smart kid, even if he never acted like it. She picked up her doll, hand glowing in the Mystical Palm Technique as she tried to seal up the cut on the flesh like analog. "Hnn...medical ninjutsu is hard..." she whined. "I've been working at this for hours." She said. ---- Yoru held a deep appreciation for his now former classmates, and Shina was no exception. In fact, Shina was probably one of the closer friends he'd made in the Academy. She was good company, and being a talented individual from a noble clan herself, he felt like they sort of understood each other on that wavelength. He'd found himself confiding in her a lot once they'd gotten to know each other better. "I'm excited, too! My mom, brother, and sister are all thrilled for me, but I think dad's probably the most happy. He keeps warning me not to get too complacent, though." Sometimes, his dad could be such a worrier. Even if things got harder from then on out, there was no quitter in his DNA, only Uchiha genes. Yoru watched, fascinated, as Shina began to try and use the Mystical Palm Technique. "That's so cool though," he exclaimed, eyes widening. "Hm... Maybe try holding the chakra in place, like a balancing act. Like, uh...like a tightrope walker! It looks like your chakra keeps fluctuating, but I don't think it's supposed to." ---- Shina stared at the doll while Yoru talked, her bright and innocent eyes seeming to smile at the other boy. She had faith in Yoru, complete faith in his abilities as a ninja, and coming from the main branch of the Hyūga Clan she had talent running through her body, but not anywhere near as much as Yoru. Something about those fabled eyes, the Byakugan and the Sharingan, made them automatically assumed to have talent, and to some extent, that was true. "Heh, sounds like your dad wants the best for you if you ask me. My mom tells me that worrying is just part of being a parent." She said, sighing, the glow of chakra fading from her palms for a moment. She looked at Yoru, and then back to the doll. "You think so? Hmm..." She shut her eyes, hand glowing green once more, but she focused hard on keeping it steady, but flowing. Sweat began to drip slightly from her brow, but in an instant, the cut on the analog began to seal, and in no time, you couldn't even tell any damage had been done. Opening her eyes, Shina's jaw dropped, eyes wide, before a huge smile overtook her features. "Oh my gosh! You're so smart Yoru-san! Thanks so much!" She said, setting the doll down and pulling Yoru into a hug with her good arm. Even one armed, Shina was still pretty freaking strong, all that taijutsu training probably made her one of the most physically strong nine year olds in the academy, right next to Kumoi of course. ---- Truth be told, Yoru felt relatively insecure about not having awakened his clan's notorious Sharingan eyes yet. He knew he was still young, he was only ten, but other Uchiha had awakened it at an earlier age than that. Part of him was actually worried that he wouldn't get much stronger without the Sharingan, but he also accepted that it would either happen or it wouldn't. It was out of his control, and it was something that would have to happen naturally on its own. Besides, at least no matter happened, the crest on his back proved that he was a fully-fledged Uchiha, and that was what was most important. "He does. Both dad and mom are great." So were Itami and Nasuka. He looked up to his big brother Itami almost as much as he looked up to his dad, which was saying something. Yoru watched intently as Shina attempted the Mystical Palm Technique once more, biting his lip. Shina could do it, he told himself. He was confident in her. A mint green glow emitted from the Hyūga's palms, and he could tell the chakra wasn't wavering nearly as much this time. Of course, it wasn't perfect, but the wound was healing before their very eyes. Yoru grinned brightly, returning the favor as Shina exclaimed in excitement, pulling him into a one-armed hug. "It was nothing," he replied modestly. ---- Shina giggled and hugged him suuuper tight, and then let him go. Leaning up against him now an slowly putting the analog into her slung arm for safekeeping, she sighed, now looking out onto the sunset with her friend. Shina was like most Hyūga, having her eyes since birth and training with it to make it deadly and effective. Her lavender hues rested upon the fire like color that had taken to the sky. "Hey Yoru, are you worried about being a ninja?" She asked. It was a vague question to be fair, but she wasn't sure how to make it sound any better then that. "Like...are you ever worried you won't be able to do what you have to?" She said. ---- Yoru shifted slightly as Shina leaned into him, in order to accommodate her. His eyes fixed once again on the horizon, watching as the sun receded to give way to night. "Worried?" he mused, pondering the question. "I guess you could say that, yeah. Our margin of error is practically nonexistent as ninja, and I think that's what worries me. That one day, I might fail, and fail miserably." The boy paused, running his fingers through his hair. "We only get one chance, you know? Failure might be catastrophic, and if we get away with it, that's mainly just luck."